Drawn To It

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I used to be a voracious reader. My time spent riding the bus everywhere usually involved a thick novel balanced carefully on my lap. However, with summer creeping slowly closer, I have been riding my bike more and my reading time has been trimmed considerably. I find myself turning to graphic novels more often to get a great story, but in a condensed version.

I discovered FreakAngels by accident. Warren Ellisis truly an icon when it comes to graphic novels. I read his first full-length novel, Crooked Little Vein, a while back, thoroughly enjoying every word. When I saw that he was working on a new online webcomic, I had to check it out. Each Friday, I get a little delivery of genius to my RSS reader.

FreakAngels is an excellent post-apocalyptic tale of survival. The twelve main characters, each with their own special ability, were the cause of something cataclysmic for which they're now trying to repay humanity. Murder, mayhem, and community gardening: a match made in heaven. Lucky for me, the other FreakAngles volumeswere recently added to our collection.

Speaking of murder, Whiteout takes place in Antarctica where the U.S. Marshall stationed there to keep the peace has to solve a gruesome murder. Then another. Then the killer comes after her. Will she survive the incoming storm while running for her life? Yes, because there’s a volume two. Greg Rucka’s storytelling is dark, and Steve Leiber’s illustrations match the writing perfectly.

I recently finished the first volume of Bayouby Jeremy Love. Another book that started as a webcomic, this lilting story from the Antebellum South follows a special girl trying to clear her father’s name. He’s been lynched for abducting a white girl, but she saw what really happened, and knows that it was actually a monster. She travels to a bizarre land where she befriends a hulking giant. Unfortunately, the story ends as they start their quest together, but I managed to track down the whole story on the site where the comic first started.